The invention relates to a carbon fiber reinforced plastic (CFRP) laminate structure which is scored to provide a predetermined breaking area.
Structural parts of spacecraft transport systems are frequently separated by pyrotechnic separating systems; that is, systems in which spent or otherwise undesired parts are separated and/or jettisoned by means of an explosion. For reasons of weight and cost, it is advantageous to manufacture such separating systems using a CFRP design instead of the previous aluminum design.
One object of the invention is to provide a sufficiently supporting CFRP laminate that breaks at a predetermined breaking line.
Another object of the invention is to provide a CFRP laminate structure that has an exactly predeterminable and testable breaking behavior.
Finally, still another object of the invention is to provide a CFRP structure in which a break occurs without loose particles resulting.
These and other objects and advantages are achieved by the separating laminate according to the invention, which is built up from several CFRP prepreg layers, each of which is scored or slit at a desired separation line or locus. The layers are arranged in such fashion that the score in each layer is separated from that of the adjacent layers. That is scores are staggered with respect to one another, so that an overlap of a certain length results from one layer to the next. The separating laminate can be built up from several unidirectional or multidirectional CFRP prepreg layers.